Fund state K-12 education first

GLENN ANDERSON, GUEST COLUMNIST

Published 10:00 pm, Monday, January 30, 2006

As the legislative session moves into high gear, in addition to the debate over lowering academic achievement standards, we continue to debate how we allocate funding to support K-12 schools. While it's an energetic debate each year, there is a simple solution to the false argument that we need to raise state taxes to adequately fund the education of our children -- fund it first.

Article IX of Washington's constitution clearly states that K-12 education is our "paramount duty" and directs the state to make ample provisions for all children. The Washington Supreme Court has affirmed that this constitutional provision requires the Legislature to define and fully fund K-12 basic education before the Legislature funds any other program. However, our state budgeting process does not adhere to this standard.

It is time to change that. I propose that we fund education first and, to that end, I have introduced HB 2637 along with 31 other Republicans from across our state. This legislation would require both the House and Senate to pass a reconciled K-12 education budget and send it to the governor for signature before finishing the budgeting process to fund any other state spending program.

Some Oregon Residents Upset at Prospect of Pumping Their Own GasBuzz 60

Doug Baldwin playcallingBy Michael-Shawn Dugar, SeattlePI

Van Crashes Into Pedestrians Injuring SixAssociated Press

US military to accept transgender recruits after Trump drops appealEuronews

Snow on Christmas Eve, 2017Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Ice carving at WinterfestSeattle Post-Intelligencer

Amtrak derails near OlympiaGrant Hindsley / SeattlePI

Golden retriever meets Darth Vader and EwokSeattle Post-Intelligencer

Seattle's tunnel project, 2017 in reviewWSDOT

Hillary Clinton Book Signing Capitol HillSeattle Post-Intelligencer

This approach would give K-12 education first call on available funding and create an entirely new form of accountability in our education system. If we align our state's budget with the state's constitutional mandate, we would all have to take a closer look at where and how money for education is being spent. Instead of the annual debate on additional taxes to fund education, the debate would turn to accountability and to meeting academic achievement standards without the need for remediation. Parents and taxpayers would know what we are spending and can address the core issue -- are we getting what we are paying for? And, if not, why not?

Last, wouldn't it be nice to finally end the manipulative rhetoric of raising state taxes for "the sake of our children"? If we fund K-12 education first, the money will be plentiful and gone will be the day that our children's education and future will be cheap political cannon fodder for clever politicians. If other state spending programs need additional taxes to support them, they can be debated on their own merit, in the open, without using children's education as a shield for special interest and partisan agendas. The House Republican Caucus is ready to provide the votes to pass this legislation, if the Democratic majority will bring it up for a vote. We are waiting. Parents and our state's children are waiting.

It's time to make the great leap, end the debate and work in a bipartisan manner toward solutions to improve our children's education based on accountability, curriculum and performance -- not money.